San Diego Wave FC didn’t make it easy for themselves on Sunday, but after battling to come back for a 2-2 draw at the Orlando Pride, they officially clinched a 2022 NWSL Playoffs berth.
That accomplishment is notable no matter the team, of course, but San Diego’s clinch is historic, as the first-ever pure expansion team to reach the playoffs in their inaugural season (to lay the definition out as concisely as possible: A “pure” expansion team is one that joined NWSL from 2014 onwards, and had to construct a squad from scratch, not moving one from another market.